Relvolution and Retribution
by Vixen Smith
Summary: Amanda's powers begin to arise at the age of 13.Overwhelmed with her mutant abilities which cause Victor & the X-men to come after her,Amanda flees her Calgary Home to her summer home in New Denver,B.C.What if Victor catches up with her years later? R&R!
1. Prolouge

Revolution and Retribution

PROLOUGE

Amanda stared out the school bus window, watching downtown Calgary fly past. Rachel leaned against her friend; head rested on Amanda's shoulder. Amanda was a girl of five foot seven, blue eyes and strawberry blond hair. She was intelligent, a constant Honors student despite not studying. She and the other grade eights were returning to school from a trip to the Science Center, which had been a last minuet adjustment to the field trip planned, seeing as the amusement park had been closed due to a weather warning. Rain began to pound against the window. Amanda huffed impatiently.

" I wish we could have been able to go to the amusement park instead," she commented.

Rachel looked up. " Yeah, me too. The Body Worlds exhibit sounds cool, but…" she shuddered.

" It just irks me that they're real bodies, that's all," Amanda looked back to her small Filipino friend. Rachel nodded her agreement.

" I'll donate my organs, maybe. But not my entire body."

" Really? I'd rather just be buried. I think it's disrespectful. I mean, unless it was a personal choice."

Rachel leaned her head back on Amanda's shoulder. Palms starting to itch, Amanda twiddled her fingers. The itch began to grow, so she scratched at her palms, fully expecting the feeling to disappear. However, her hands began to burn slightly, causing to her look down. The skin on her palms had turned splotchy red and white—nothing unusual.

" Are my hands hot?" she asked, holding them against Rachel's cheeks.

" A little."

Amanda removed her hands as Rachel again sat up. " They itch."

Rachel inspected her skin. " Did you put hand sanitizer on?" she inquired.

Amanda thought back. " Yes," she replied, fully remembering now, " when you guys were in the bathroom and I was outside, just before Toby and Zach came out and told us we were really loud."

Toby and Zach were two of the most popular boys in Mrs. Harrison's class, both of which the girls had had small crushes on earlier that year. Amanda hadn't really been proud of that.

" Huh. Maybe you're having an allergic reaction or something," Rachel concluded.

" I guess." Amanda wasn't thrilled with the idea. She wanted to be able to say she had no allergies.

As the bus arrived at the school, Amanda was relived to find that the burning sensation in her hands had stopped twenty minuets before. Sitting in her second-row desk, Amanda's palms started to burn with more intensity. Surpressing a soft grunt, she pressed them into the top of her desk which she found to be pleasantly cold. Nausea overtook her. Amanda pressed her cheek into the desk as well, focusing her eyes on the terribly ugly tan floor. A hand was placed on her shoulder after a few moments.

" Are you O.K?" Toby asked.

Amanda didn't answer the boy that sat behind her.

" Amanda?"

Still she did not rely. Instead, she closed her eyes.

Toby shook her gently. " Amanda, seriously. Can you at least say something?"

Finally, Amanda opened her mouth to reply. She was shocked to find that only a weak groan came out. Toby let his hand slid back to his desk as her glanced around the room of joking teenagers for Mrs. Harrison. Not finder his teacher, Toby sat back in his chair as the bell rang to dismiss the students.

" Amanda!" Shannon, one of Amanda's closest friends, called from across the room.

Amanda slid herself out of the chair at her call. Feeling the sickness evaporate as she elevated her head, Amanda packed her orange backpack and headed out to her bus with Rachel and Shannon, not noticing the light marks her hands had left on the laminated desk top and completely oblivious to the fact that her powers as a mutant were steadily arising.


	2. Chapter 1 The Past

CHAPTER 1

It has been four years since my mutant powers surfaced. I am now 17 years old and graduating from high school, with the dream of becoming a paleontologist. I remember the day I found out. My palms had steadily began to burn more intensely everyday until one Saturday they seemed to glow a weird red. Then there was fire. Fire everywhere. It shot from my hands in thin beams. Unfortunately, I left plenty of holes in my bedroom wall after that. But my parents understood. So did Rachel and Shannon, my closest friends. They keep my secret. But that didn't prevent Stryker from finding out about me. It was a close call, that last day back in good old Calgary, Alberta. That Victor Creed guy almost had me. That also happened to be the day I discovered my powers burn skin. And the day I was even more thankful my parents got me that peacock blue BMW for my sixteenth birthday.

_Flashback_

I slammed the heavy fire door behind me. I grabbed a meter stick from a nearby classroom and shoved it between the door handles in hopes of keeping Victor away from me for just a little bit longer. I didn't wait to see how he fared against my feeble protection attempt. I kept running until I was out the Grade 12 exit. Suddenly I was thankful my school was so poor we constantly had to change buildings—the previous high school didn't have a student parking lot. I unlocked my BMW with the portable remote clasped onto my keys. Jumping in, I locked the doors, fearing Victor had caught up with me. I jammed the key into the ignition and backed out of the student parking lot and shot down the road. When I was on the highway headed home, I had only two things on my mind: Victor and the cops. Why Victor was on my mind, well, the only reason you wouldn't be able to piece two and two together was if you were really that stupid. My only concern with the cops was that I was speeding. A lot. A ticket was the last thing I needed. After what seemed like a long while, I pulled up next to the 1978 trailer on my driveway. I had a plan, which I somewhat hated, but I had to go through with. I had heard horror stories about what happens to the mutants Victor takes back to Stryker. I stepped into my empty house, thanking God that both my parents were at work and my little brother was still at school. I grabbed my black and red duffel bag from my closet and frantically began shoving clothes and toiletries into it. When my dresser and other drawers where successfully gutted and relocated into my duffel bag, overnight bag and TNA purse, I raced back out to my car and unlocked the trunk. Tossing the bags inside, I ran back in for more. I packed up all my money and entertainments (my older cell, my Ipod touch, my Iphone, my Dsi and camera) and threw them in my smaller Fossil purse and quickly ripped a piece of paper out of my notepad. Grabbing a pen, I wrote a note to my family.

_Dear Mom, Dad, and Keith,_

_Stryker has sent Victor for me again. This time, he's harder on my trail and I fear he is going to catch up. So I have made my decision to leave Alberta and move to British Columbia. I am doing this not only to protect my self, but to protect you guys, too. I know you won't take this lightly, but please don't come looking for me, for your own safety. Tell everyone out in Cochrane, Redwood and Coaldale I love them. I love you!_

_~ Amanda =^..^=_

After I sign the note with my traditional symbol cat (which I call "CyberKat") I tape the paper to the counter and pet my cats, Simon and Charley, goodbye and race upstairs to my room one last time to grab my mice, Sabine and Leo, and take my last look at my bedroom. I jump back into my BMW and set the GPS to lead me to New Denver, where my family's summer home is. I'm heading out on my seven-hour commute in utter silence. My mice squeak occasionally in their cage. I've strapped them in the passenger seat. I plug my Ipod into the dock (yeah, my parents did the whole "Pimp my Ride" thing) and put it on shuffle, resolving not to skip any songs just to see how far it'll get me into the trip. I'm not going to tell anyone down in New Denver I'm coming. I'm going to wait and see how long it takes them to notice I arrived.

_End flashback_

New Denver. Possibly the smallest village in BC. Located on the Slocan Valley, it had originally been called Eldorado. It was renamed when it was predicted it would surpass Colorado's Denver, which apparently never happened. No drama ever really happens here, but my family has a reputation for raising a stink about stuff. However, I've been here for half a year now, undisturbed. Over the past time I've been here, I learned Stryker and Victor aren't the only mutant organization after men. Professor Xavier and his band of X-men are trying to find me too. I think I chose a good town to hide in. I'm almost normal—I've got a job down in Nakusp with my fiery cousin, Misha. Hopefully, no other mutant will find me for quite some time.


	3. Chapter 2 An Evening's Horror

CHAPTER 2

"Amanda, can you restock these watermelons?" my manager, Mr. Adams, asked. He handed me a cart with cardboard boxes stacked on it.

" Sure thing," I reply, smiling, before heading out with the cart in tow.

I won't say I _like_ my job at Overwieghty Foods in Nakusp, but I have to get the money for bills and gas somewhere. I get an employee's discount on groceries, and I don't need much food so I don't tend to worry too much about that. Misha skips up beside me and begins to help me unload watermelons onto the produce shelves.

" What's up, Misha?" I ask.

" Not a lot. I've got to stop at the drug store on the way home, O.K? Andy needs more of that sunscreen he uses." She replies.

" What does he use, like, SPF 65?" I joke. Misha giggles.

Andy is Misha's brother. He's only a couple months older than I am and he's still way immature. His best friend James is always at his house and by always I mean _always._ I'm glad he has such a close friend, though, however annoying James might be. Shannon and Rachel had always been my two closest friends. I could never chose between them.

By now we have finished restocking the watermelons. I check my watch. It's almost six, closing time for Fridays.

" Come on," I say, nudging Misha's arm, " let's go home. I'm looking forward to a weekend without work!"

I toss my keys into the decorative wooden bowl sitting on the small corner table in the foyer of my house. I kick off my shoes into the closet and drop my TNA bag (which I use as my purse) onto the green marble counter. I put my Ipod in the dock on the side counter and hit shuffle. I open the blinds and momentarily watch as the evening sun sets the sundried tomato colored walls on fire before opening a package of sushi for my dinner. My house looks like crap on the outside, but I guess the saying " All that really matters is what's on the inside" or whatever it is really applies to it. Of course, I didn't paint the walls, set the tiles or put green marble in as my countertops myself. If I had done that I would be totally bankrupt. The previous owners renovated the interior and tended to the garden out back. All I'm going to do is fix up the outside when I've got the money to spare. I start as a sudden rapping sounds on my door. Heaving myself up, I huff quietly and pad back to the foyer.

_For crying out loud, I haven't even been home for ten minuets yet…_

When I open the door I can't help but cock an eyebrow. No one's waiting on my doorstep. I shrug and shut the door and am about to return to my sushi when the sound of knuckles against glass stops me in my tracks. My eyes wander to the living room. I walk in and look out the window to see—again—no one. The sound comes again, this time from the bathroom. I jog in and pull up the blinds, half expecting to have the heart attack of my life when I saw a face staring back at me. But all I could see was my backyard. This time the noise comes from the kitchen. I race after it as it keeps moving around my house until I'm back at the front door. Wrenching it open, I'm half angered half relieved to just see the normal view of Slocan Lake. But I swear I saw a flash of black fabric disappear over the hill leading down to the shore.


	4. Chapter 3 Lela

CHAPTER 3

I try not to think about the odd noises coming from my walls that day. I know it can't be good. I've recently made friends with Lela, a local mutant. She's the one who told me Professor Xavier was looking for me, too. She said they had turned up on her doorstep asking for me. Instead, now they know there are two mutants living in the New Denver area. Currently, Lela and I are lying on the Centennial beach in the New Denver campground. She's telling me what she's heard about the mutants Victor catches. What they do to them, I mean.

" Yeah, I heard Stryker sticks needles in them and stuff. And keeps them in cages like animals. Rumor has it he's trying to build a weapon." Lela closes her abnormal yellow eyes.

" Using powers?" I ask.

Lela nods. " From the mutants Victor brings him."

" But how do you know?"

Lela levels her rather intimidating gaze with mine. " 'Cuz some one escaped the Island once."

I raise my eyebrows. " Really? Who?" I'm eager to know about _this._

" Heard his name is Gambit or something weird like that."

"Wow." I'm at a loss for words. You just don't _escape _the Island. You just don't. It's not possible. Everyone knows that. This Gambit guy has really got to be something. My cell starts to ring its familiar ringtone by Mariana's Trench.

" Masterpiece Theater 3?" Lela guesses. She's got the ringtone right.

" Yup." I reply, flipping it open. " Hello?"

An unfamiliar voice greets me back. " Hello, Amanda," it says, " Where are you? I've been trying to find you for weeks."

I can't help but feel the initial shock. Hey, I'm only human. " Who is this?" I ask, keeping my voice steady.

" Doesn't matter. I just want to know where you are. I need to talk to you." The person replies.

It's a guff male's voice, so I have no idea who this is. Or could be, for that matter. I don't give my number out willingly.

" I won't tell you until you tell me who you are."

The man on the other end paused. " Not going to happen, Amanda. I'm at your house, but you're not home. So where are you?"

I roll my eyes. This guy was _seriously _going to piss me off.

" Okay, James. If this is some sick joke or something, I swear I'll-"

" It's not James." The man cut me off.

Suddenly Lela snatches my phone away from me and presses it to her ear.

" Gotcha!" she bubbled with fake enthusiasm. " If you have been talking to my answering message, I have just successfully kept an idiot entertained! You've reached the Allay family cell. If you want to talk to Lela, press seven to reach my house phone. If you want to talk to Morgan, press five. If you want to talk to my mom, press four to reach my house or three to reach her workplace. If you want to talk to Amanda, press end call."

Lela slammed the phone shut and tossed it back to me.

" Lela, what the hell?" I snap.

" Nevermind." She hisses, scrabbling up. " Grab your stuff. We have to leave now!"

Lela drives her silver SUV past my house. I've given up pestering her about the mystery caller. Peering out the tinted window, I see a man pacing through my front yard. He's wearing a black coat. An all-to-familiar black coat. I gasp and press myself into the car seat with my hand covering my mouth as Lela keeps driving.

Victor. Victor Creed was at my house.


End file.
